


Warning: Tentacles

by qwerty



Series: one word prompts [4]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Animal Transformation, M/M, Tentacles, but a bit fishy nonethess, no Titanic business, really random spells
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-04
Updated: 2012-04-04
Packaged: 2017-11-03 01:15:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/375446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/qwerty/pseuds/qwerty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin grabbed Arthur, ran up on deck and jumped into the sea.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Warning: Tentacles

**Author's Note:**

> written for marguerite_26's one word prompts fest: (swimming) trunks

Arthur vanished almost as soon as they hit the water, sliding from Merlin's arms in a rush of slippery skin and a cloud of ink. "Arthur," he hissed, and then dived, but it was too dark to see anything under the water.

"Arthur," he called again, sputtering a little as he surfaced, annoyance and worry warring in him. "I know you can hear me, get back here! We don't know how long this spell of Morgana's will last, and if you've wriggled into some ridiculous tight spot when it wears off, YOU ARE GOING TO DROWN." He swiped the water from his face and tugged again at the too-loose swim-trunks he'd borrowed from Arthur. "What kind of experiment were you and Morgana talking about, and why did she turn you into an octopus? You're lucky we were on her yacht and not your country house for the holiday like you wanted!"

Was Arthur listening to him? Could he even hear Merlin under the water? Merlin huffed to himself, decided that he was more irritated than worried about Arthur now that he was no longer running with an armful of squirmy octopus looking for a way up to the deck. Why had he jumped in with Arthur rather than just dropping him in? Merlin began to swim for the ladder to get out and wait for Arthur to regain his proper form so they could get back to their game.

Or not. Merlin made a mental note to never play Truth or Dare with Morgana ever again. She came up with the strangest dares and penalties.

Something tickled his foot. Merlin yelped and jerked away and nearly swallowed water in his shock when a soft, flexible tentacle slid up and wrapped around his ankle and foot. He kicked out in reflex, and the tentacle stretched up his calf and tightened. The round suckers clamped on hard, and Merlin gasped and flailed about on the surface, surprised by how much it felt like a dozen round mouths sucking on his skin. "What are you doing? Are you trying to drown me?"

Another tentacle shot up and coiled around his thigh, and Merlin squeaked at how close the end of that one settled and sucked at the bottom of his trunks and around his leg. He managed to grab on to the ladder and started to pull himself up, then stopped with just his shoulders out of the water, panting as Arthur pulled himself up Merlin's back and wrapped more arms around his belly, one slipping over his hipbone to dip under the waist of his trunks, dangerously close to his crotch. Then all the suckers pulled at him together, and he let out a whimper at the sensation.

He unclenched one hand from the ladder rungs to reach back and pat Arthur's head behind him. "Arthur, are you in your right mind? Squeeze my, um, right ankle if the answer is yes. And stop sucking me, I won't try to kick you off anymore."

Arthur stopped sucking at him, squeezed his ankle once, and waited expectantly. Merlin shivered in his alien embrace, thinking hard.

"Is this part of the dare Morgana told you in secret? Because it isn't funny," he said, voice cracking a little. Another arm came up and stroked his back gently. "Okay, squeeze once for yes, and twice for no." Arthur squeezed him all over twice, and Merlin found himself giggling involuntarily at the slide of the tentacles around his sides. "I meant for you to squeeze my ankle again, you nut. But what are you doing if it's not for a dare?"

Arthur squeezed him again, and as he did, the rows of suckers arrayed across his body tugged at his skin in unison, like rows and rows of hungry mouths sucking at him, and Merlin gasped. Arthur stopped and remained still again.

Merlin thought. He let his free hand trail from Arthur's head to follow a tentacle around his middle, squeezed him back. "If you're in your right mind and it's not a dare... okay. I don't even know what I'm saying okay to, but okay." He laughed nervously.

Arthur seemed to contemplate his response, tentacles flexing meditatively around Merlin for several long heartbeats. Then he surged forward with all his tentacles, wrapping around Merlin's chest and reaching between his legs and stretching down all his limbs in a strange, sliding, sucking embrace, and Merlin whimpered.


End file.
